OH-16: John Boccieri - Protecting Social Security

Retirement and Social Security - Supporting America's Seniors

Citizens who have spent their entire lives contributing to the strength of America deserve the best support and care we can provide. The keys to a secure, comfortable retirement include a strong Social Security system, robust pensions and retirement savings, and high-quality, affordable health care services.

John has consistently supported seniors in the Ohio state legislature, working to protect pensions, control prescription drug costs and improve in-home health care and nursing home care. In Congress, he will fight to secure the promise of a comfortable retirement for this generation and many more to come.

John will fight for these priorities in Washington:

Protect and Strengthen Social Security

Social Security is a vital program that helps millions of Americans in their senior years. It must be protected and preserved.

John opposes any effort to privatize Social Security. Contrary to the claims of alarmists, Social Security will remain solvent and pay full benefits for decades to come. The program faces a long-term challenge, and we should take careful steps that will secure the benefits of this successful program for future generations with minimal impact on taxpayers or beneficiaries today.

Help Workers Save for Retirement

While Social Security provides an essential safety net, a comfortable retirement requires additional long-term savings. Today, the amount Americans save for retirement depends largely on the type of savings programs their employer chooses to provide. Roughly half of the U.S. workforce has no retirement plan at work, dramatically reducing the chances that workers will save enough to supplement Social Security in retirement.

We can address this problem by providing easy retirement savings options for workers who do not receive a retirement plan through their employer. Giving these workers incentives to enroll in their own retirement savings accounts would make saving simple and let them continue saving even when they leave or change jobs. This system would also ease burdens on employers, who should be encouraged to make matching contributions to employees’ retirement savings.

Enhance Pension Protections

Workers who have paid into an employer-provided retirement plan must have every guarantee that they will actually receive their benefits when they retire. Employers cannot be allowed to fold a company and leave employees who have been working there for decades with dramatically reduced pension payments or no pension at all.

We need to strengthen the laws that protect pensions to ensure that companies are responsibly managing their pension liabilities and that workers receive the benefits they were promised even if a company declares bankruptcy. We should also give employers and employees incentives to choose retirement savings options that maximize security and minimize risk.

Strengthen and Improve Medicare

42 million Americans currently receive health care support from Medicare. This vital program can be made more effective and cost-efficient by:

• Allowing Medicare to Negotiate Lower Prescription Drug Prices.

Medicare Part D currently bans the government from negotiating with drug companies to get seniors lower prices on prescription drugs – even though the VA, Department of Defense, and other government agencies are allowed to negotiate drug prices. This ban was added to the Medicare law by a Congressman who now works as the top lobbyist for the pharmaceutical industry. With the cost of brand name prescription drugs rising 50% since 2002, it’s time to end this ban and allow Medicare to negotiate cheaper drug prices for seniors.

• Closing the Medicare Part D Coverage Gap.

Medicare D currently provides no help with prescription drug expenses over $2,500 and under $5,700 per year – a large gap in coverage often called the “donut hole.” We should act to shrink this gap and help seniors avoid unmanageable drug costs.

• Emphasizing Preventive Care.

Providing easy, affordable access to health services to prevent illness or catch medical problems early is one of the most effective ways to reduce costs across our health care system. Medicare should provide incentives to beneficiaries to seek preventive care.

Fix Our Broken Health Care System

High-quality health care is especially important for older Americans. Those between the ages of 55 and 64 spend almost twice as much on health care as people between 35 and 44, and costs only rise from there. Health care premiums have doubled since 2001.

We need to overhaul our healthcare system to ensure that every American can receive quality, affordable care. Encouraging preventive care, making health coverage portable from one job to the next, and ending discrimination based on pre-existing conditions will go a long way toward fixing our health care system. Through a combination of public and private solutions, we can put patients and doctors first, control costs, and give all Americans the choice they want and the care they need.

Improve the Quality and Affordability of Long-Term Care

As America’s population ages, access to a range of choices for long-term care is more important than ever. We need to ensure the quality of in-home professional caregivers and nursing home facilities, and give families the resources and knowledge they need to provide their own care and make informed long-term care decisions. This will require strong standards, increased access to information about care options for seniors and their families, and investments in training for caregivers.

Help with High Heating Costs

The rising price of oil not only impacts prices at the gas pump but the cost to heat many homes during the winter months. The Low-Income Heating Assistance Program helps many seniors afford the cost of heating oil, and we must ensure that this program is prepared to meet rising need as fuel costs increase.

"With two parents who are retired, this is a personal issue for me. We need to support our citizens who have worked hard and given back to their communities their entire lives." ~ Senator Major John Boccieri(D-Alliance), Thursday, August 14, 2008

Opponent Kirk Schuring has not only voted to raise the retirement age, strip half a billion dollars from state pension funds, and block lower prescription drug costs for seniors, but actually sponsored legislation to eliminate privacy protections for Golden Buckeye cardholders by releasing their names to the public. Schuring was the only State Representative to vote against the Golden Buckeye program to negotiate lower drug prices for seniors.

Listen to John discussing the success of Social Security and his plans to preserve it.